Guin Police plan new vehicle purchases

GUIN — The Guin City Council approved a request from the Guin Police Department to purchase a new police vehicle, and possibly more over the next few years, during its regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 5.
Guin Police Chief Daryl Spencer and Corporal Jason Rhudy spoke to the council about the department’s need for new vehicles as its current aging fleet is incurring high maintenance costs.
Mayor Bobby Bellew said the city has spent around $50,000 in repair costs over the last two years.
Rhudy explained to the council there were a few purchasing options for different types of vehicles, but recommended purchasing a Ford F-150.
Rhudy said the F-150 comes with the option to trade it back in for its initial purchase price as long as the department does so before the manufacturer’s warranty expires. Not only would the vehicles be covered under warranty, which would cut down on repair costs, but the ability to trade up frequently would further reduce those costs.
According to Rhudy, the only downside would be the trucks would need to be fitted with the proper equipment, but added the department already had a lot of that equipment that could be moved onto the new trucks.
During the discussion, Spencer suggested the city could stagger purchasing new trucks one at a time and year by year, which would make replacing all of the vehicles more feasible and prevent them all from wearing out at the same time.